The Bond Within
by Bittybutton
Summary: When Ezra was three, his parents were killed in front of their home on Lothol. When he was four, a couple by the name Kanan Jarrus and Shadow Drew adopted him and has taken care of him since then. Now he is fourteen, but I will tell you his story, the story of Ezra Drew Jarrus.
1. Chapter 1

When I was three, my parents were killed in front of our home on Lothol. When I was four, a couple by the name Kanan Jarrus and Shadow Drew adopted me and has taken care of me since then. Now I am fourteen, but I will tell you my story, the story of Ezra  
Drew Jarrus.

4 year old Ezra's POV

I woke up to the two suns shining brightly into the dark, dusty, mouldy alleyway I was camping out in. Since my parents death over a year ago, I have been living off of practically nothing. Today was my birthday also Empire day. There were quite a few  
people in the streets preparing to watch the festivities. I sigh as I knew it would be a long day.

The day dragged on for eternity until the festivities began. I was walking past the shops lining the Main Street when two teenage boys ran past and kicked me down into a muddy puddle before running off. I sigh and wipe the mud off my face. "Here, let  
me help." I hear a female voice kindly say. I close my eyes as a delicate hand gently guides a cloth over my face, removing it of the mud.

I open my blue eyes and they are met with dazzling emerald green ones. I look at the lady in front of me. "Hello little one, what is you're name and where are your parents?" The lady asks me.

"I'm, uh, Ezra. My parents died a year ago. I've been living in the streets for the last year. W... w... what's your name?" I stammer.

"My name is Shadow Drew. That is a sad tale my child. No one, especially a child, should have to go through that." Shadow sympathises.

"SHADOW! SHADOW! Where are you?" A young man cries.

"I'm over here!" Shadow yells over, attracting his attention.

The man runs over and practically crushes Shadow with a massive hug. Shadow mouths the words "Save yourselves." Before fake dying. I knew it was fake but it still made me panic, that the lady who had actually taken the time to talk to me, was 'dead'.  
I ran over and tugged on the mans arm. "Hm?" He grunts before noticing Shadows state. "Come on Shadow, you're scaring the kid." He sternly says.

"You're no fun." Shadow complains.

"Yeah, but you were scaring the poor fellow. Who is this anyway?" He asks.

"Oh, this is Ezra. His parents were killed last year by the Empire and he's been wandering the streets ever since." Shadow introduces. "Ezra, this is Kanan, my best friend."

I see a look of sadness flash through Kanan's eyes when Shadow says 'best friends' and that's when I figured out that Kanan had a crush on Shadow.

As the sun begins to set, Kanan looks at his watch. "Shadow," he says. "It's time to go."

"But Kanan, we can't leave him out here alone." Shadow exclaims

"That's true but what can we do?" Kanan asks.

"We can adopt him." Shadow retorted. "Hey Ezra, would you like that?"

"I sure would. It beats living out here on my own." I exclaim.

"See Kanan, please!" Shadow begs, giving Kanan her puppy eyes. I see what she's doing and join in.

"Gah! Fine. Come on, it's almost dark." Kanan says, finally breaking. We head down the street and through a few alleyways.

We eventually reach their house which has its lights on and music coming from within. "Their having a disco again." Kanan moans.

"Who's in there?" I ask, puzzled.

"Our roommates, Sammy and Zoe. They're a couple who love to party. Come on, we'll introduce you to them." Shadow explains. We enter the house only to be met with a couple making out. Kanan clears his throat, making the couple jump.

"Hey, Kanan, Shadow, little boy we don't know. Who's this?" The male asks.

"This is Ezra. We've adopted him. Now, no more late night parties you two. " Shadow sternly says.

"Come on Shadow. It's only been two parties." Zoe exclaims

"Ten actually." Kanan states. "Now, we're taking Ezra up to the spare bedroom so he can sleep. Night you two." Kanan and Shadow take me upstairs and into a room, most likely the spare room. "This is your room now Ezra. We'll decorate it tomorrow but you  
need your rest. Night Ezra." Shadow explains.

"Night Shadow." I murmur, falling asleep.

I'm awoken the next morning by an argument downstairs. "What do you mean by 'we're leaving?" I hear Shadow exclaim.

"Shush, we don't want to wake Ezra. Look, Zoe and I have found an apartment on the other side of town. We feel too restrainedhere so we're leaving. Goodbye." Sammy explains calmly before walking out of the house.

I sneak down the stairs and see Shadow on the sofa, quietly weeping. "Zoe is her best friend. Shadow's a bit shocked that Zoe chose her boyfriend over her. She'll get over it eventually. Don't worry." I hear Kanan whisper in my ear, making me jump.

"How did you know that I heard the conversation?" I inquire.

"I could see your shadow. Plus, I heard you moving about." Kanan replied. "Come on, lets comfort Shadow."

We walk into the living room and pull Shadow into a big hug. Her shaking body relaxes at our touch and she hugs us back. We sit in that position for a while until Kanan gets up. "I'm going to make some breakfast. Any orders?" He asks.

"Can I have pancakes. I haven't had them in ages!" I inquire.

"Of course, and you Shadow?" Kanan asks.

"Same as Ezra. Thanks Kanan." Shadow replies.

"No problem, now I may need an assistant for this breakfast, Ezra would you mind helping?" Kanan inquiries with a smile.

"Of course not! I used to love to cook with my parents." I exclaim.

"Well then, I'm going to go change. Call me when breakfast is ready." Shadow smiles.

Kanan and I have a bit of fun making funny shaped pancakes. I take this chance and start talking to Kanan.

"Hey Kanan, do you like Shadow?" I inquire.

"As a friend yes, why do you ask?" Kanan skilfully dodges my question.

"I saw the way you looked when she introduced you as her best friend. It's the same look my dad gave my mum." I explain.

"Well, in that case, yes, I like Shadow more than friends but I don't think that she feels the same way. Let's get on with these pancakes." Kanan sighs.

Shadow comes downstairs just as we start serving the pancakes. We quickly eat breakfast before headed out into town for some shopping. Kanan takes me and we get some clothes for me to wear while Shadow gets the groceries. We meet up before starting to  
shop for decorations for my room. When we return home, Kanan helps Shadow put up my decorations while I unpack my clothes. I fall asleep between Shadow and Kanan on my bed, all worn out from the day.


	2. Chapter Two

Eight year old Ezra's POV

I walk home from school towards my house. It was a long, boring day of school but I was excited to get home to see mum and papa. I quicken my pace and in no time, I'm at my home. I unlock the door and step inside. Once inside, something doesn't feel right  
as the house is eerily quiet. My parents aren't quiet. I set my bag beside the partially open door and tiptoe around the house. No one was home. I look in the kitchen and notice a note. It read:

 _"Dear Ezra,_

 _We were called in for some cover shifts at the bar. Once you're changed, head down to the bar and bring some stuff to keep you occupied. It's going to be a long evening._

 _Lots of love,_

 _Mum and Papa."_

I quickly run upstairs to get changed before adding a few sketchbooks to my bag. I pick it up and lock the door behind me before headed off on the trek across town. As I get closer to the bar, the two suns begin to set, hovering the alleyways a eerie  
look. I quicken my pace attempting to get to my parents before nightfall.

I'm unsuccessful as the suns fully set when I'm only three blocks away from the bar. I continue my walk but when I'm only half a block away, I'm stopped by a drunken man. "Hey," he slurs. "You look like you're worth a fewcredits."  
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"No, eh? Then some other form of persuasion might work. How about I punch you?" He cackles.

"No! Please!" I exclaim.

"Hehe..." the man laughs before two figures appear behind him.

"I suggest that you leave him alone, if you are a wise man, Darrel." One stated, coming into the light. It was mum!

"Oh yeah. You're just a weak woman who has her boyfriend protect her." The man, now named Darrel, laughs.

"I'm not her boyfriend, but that's our adopted son there, so I'd leave him be if I were you." The other individual growls. It's papa!

Darrel laughs before throwing a sloppy punch towards mum. Thankfully his aim is terrible so mum wasn't hit. Papa retaliated with a punch to Darrel's stomach, Darrel loosening his grip on me. I manage to slip away from his grasp and run over to mum.  
Mum shields me whilst Papa protects the two of us. "Well, this is unexpected. I'm leaving now." Darrel surrenders before walking off.

"Come on, kiddo. Let's head to the bar." Papa smiles, throwing his arm around my shoulders.

When we enter the bar, Darla, the owner and friend of mum and papa's, runs over. "Are you all ok? You just took off. What happened?" She asks.

"Well, since we adopted Ezra, we can sorta 'sense' when he needs our help or is in trouble. Darrel had cornered him and was about to beat him up. Don't worry, we felt with him. Now, let's get back to our jobs." Dad explains.

"Ok, now table seven needs their order served to them and table one needs their order taken. Ezra, you can sit in the back room and work on your homework." Darla orders.

"Yes mam' "I laugh.

The evening went by fast with mama, papa and Darla checking on me every free moment they got. There was a bit of a kerfuffle out in the bar when an imperial commander complained about the TV station and that it was the wrong channel but thankfully  
papa dealt with him calmly. When it was closing up time, mum helped me pack my homework up while Darla and papa talked. What they talked about I don't know but it has something to do with those suspicious phone calls papa receives.  
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When we reach home, papa and mum start making dinner while I finish my homework in the dining room. I finished it before dinner was served and decided to help serve dinner, but before I could enter the kitchen, I heard soft arguments. "What do  
you mean, you're leaving? What about Ezra?" Mum hisses.

"Well, I've been offered a job on a ship but it's a long term thing. Ezra won't know, we'll just tell him I'm on a long trip. He'll be fine. Anyways, he'll be getting suspicious that we haven't served dinner. Let's serve dinner." Papa mutters.  
I tiptoe back into the dining room and pack up the remaining books left out.

Just as I finish packing up my books, papa walks in with two plates, mum following him with one plate. We sit down and eat quickly. "Hey Ezra, papa has to go on a business trip. Don't worry I'll be back." Papa explains.

"Ok, just be back before my birthday." I smile.

"I'll try Ezra, I'll try." Papa mutters.

"Ok, Ezra, bathtime!" Mum exclaims.

"Noooooo!" I moan, making papa chuckle. I start running around the apartment, trying to avoid the dreaded bath time. Once Mum had me washed, I said goodnight to papa before headed to bed, not knowing that this would be the last time I saw my  
papa for a while.


End file.
